Nevada has expanded their Medicaid services to now include annual dental coverage up to $2,500 for adults over 21 with disabilities, according to Nevada Current. With attributes such as dental clinics refusing or opting out of providing dental services, those with intellectual and developmental disabilities have higher rates of poor oral care and oral diseases. Nevada’s expansion of dental services has caused a network of trained dentists to create a safe network to provide services for disabled persons on Medicaid throughout the state.

Nevada will join the Northwest Prescription Drug Consortium for prescription drug purchasing, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Once the state joins, all state residents can get a free discount program card and can use whichever pharmacy benefit provides the best price, regardless of their existing coverage or insurance status. The consortium, called ArrayRx Solutions, is coordinated by Oregon and Washington, and enables participating states to combine their drug purchasing power to lower costs and negotiate and establish discounts for consumers.

Adam Woodrum was biking with his wife and kids when his 9-year old son Robert crashed his bike. Robert received anesthesia and stiches in the emergency department. In this edition of Kaiser Health News’ Bill of the Month, it is revealed that the insurance company denied the medical claim and the Woodrums were charged the entire bill of $18,933.44. This is an example of subrogation, where health insurers try to save money when an accident is involved by passing the buck to other insurers (such as auto or homeowners). Eventually, the insurance company reconsidered the claim after Adam completed an accident questionnaire stating that there was no liable third party responsible for the bike crash.

The Nevada Legislature approved immense cuts to the state’s health and education budgets on July 19^th in an effort to rebalance the state budget amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and plummeting revenue projections, reports the Associated Press. The revised budget passed through both the state Senate and Assembly after days and nights of deliberation in the part-time Legislature, which the Nevada governor convened for an unscheduled special legislative session on July 8 to address a projected $1.2 billion revenue shortfall. The plan cuts more than $500 million from the state budget, with the largest reductions hitting the Department of Health and Human Services and the K-12 education system, including cuts to Medicaid reimbursement rates and specialty care programs and funding allocated to the state’s most underperforming schools. The Nevada governor said in a statement he intends to sign the bill.

The Nevada Governor announced the appointment of 11 members and an executive director to the Patient Protection Commission (PPC), according to the Governor’s office. The PPC, which was signed into law this past legislative session, will take a comprehensive look at the state of healthcare in Nevada and identify areas for improvement to ensure every Nevadan has access to affordable and quality healthcare.

The Nevada Governor announced the appointment of 11 members and an executive director to the Patient Protection Commission (PPC), reports The Official State of Nevada Website. The PPC, which was created by Senate Bill 544 and signed into law this past legislative session, will take a comprehensive look at the state of health care in Nevada and identify areas for improvement to ensure every Nevadan has access to affordable and quality health care. Under the direction of the Chair and Executive Director, the PPC will begin meeting in early 2020.

This year, Nevada Health Link, a website that helps people without health insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid find coverage, will now be primarily operated by a state agency instead of the federal government, reports KRNV. Because of issues early on with the Nevada Health Link website, they had to completely rely on healthcare.gov. However, the federal government started charging states to use healthcare.gov and eventually, the charges would have outweighed Nevada's budget. The shift may help cut costs for those already covered and significantly expand coverage to those who have never had health insurance before. As the only health insurance resource that provides subsidized insurance, Nevada Health Link could help more than 77,000 people receive affordable healthcare for the first time ever.

Nevada is imposing $17.4 million in fines on 21 diabetes drug manufacturers that have either failed to comply with or were many months late in complying with a drug pricing transparency law passed two years ago, reports The Nevada Independent. The law, which was passed by the Legislature in 2017, requires diabetes drug manufacturers to annually report to the state production costs, administrative expenditures, profits, financial assistance, coupons, and other information. It also requires manufacturers to provide additional information for drugs determined to have experienced a significant price increase, including a list of each factor that contributed to the increase and the percentage of the total increase attributable to each factor

The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services is threatening to levy roughly $20 million in fines on more than two dozen drug manufacturers that have yet to submit cost and profit reports to the state as required by a law aimed at better understanding the rising costs of treating diabetes, reports The Nevada Independent. Under the 2017 diabetes drug transparency law, the annual reports are required to include production costs, administrative expenditures, profits, financial assistance, coupons, and other information in an effort to better understand why the disease is so costly to treat. Manufacturers are also required to provide to the state additional information for drugs determined to have experienced a significant price increase, including a list of each factor that contributed to the increase and the percentage of the total increase attributable to each factor.

Nevada passed a law creating a Patient Protection Commission (PPC) that will examine healthcare costs and the primary factors that are driving those costs, reports KTV News. The PPC will also review the roots of disparities in care among different communities, including the adequacy of healthcare providers and availability of health insurance plans. The PPC will have 11 members appointed by the governor with recommendations from legislative leadership. Membership will include representation from across the industry – health plans, providers, hospitals, and pharmaceuticals – an academic experienced in healthcare policy and patient advocates to represent healthcare consumers.

A new Nevada law limits the amount insured patients can be charged for emergency services when they receive care from an out-of-network provider, according to KTVN. The law will end surprise billing practices “that can leave patients on the hook for unexpected bills for emergency care that can run up to $10,000 or more." The Governor also signed Assembly Bill 170, which codifies the Affordable Care Act’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions into Nevada state law, providing Nevadans assurance that they won’t be denied healthcare based on a pre-existing condition regardless of what happens at the federal level. 

The Nevada governor vetoed a measure that would have offered a state-sponsored health insurance option to all residents regardless of income, due to unanswered questions about how the program would work, reports the Los Angeles Times. Had the governor signed it, Nevada would have become the first state to attempt a Medicaid-for-all approach to health insurance. Proponents argued that a state-sponsored plan would offer lower insurance premiums for consumers unable to afford options in the individual market. While likely, the reported premium reductions have yet to be supported by quantitative analysis. The bill’s sponsor plans to reintroduce the legislation during next year’s session. 

Nevada’s Governor signed into law the nation's strictest requirements for pharmaceutical companies to reveal how they set certain prescription drug prices, according to CBS MoneyWatch. The law requires drug makers to annually disclose the list prices they set, profits they make and discounts they give to market middlemen on insulin and other diabetes drugs sold at prices that have skyrocketed during the last decade. 

Corrections officials told lawmakers that medical costs are rising fast within the system, driven by a combination of factors the department isn't in control of, according to the Nevada Appeal. The inmate population is aging, causing them to require more trips to the hospital and longer stays. He said there are new drugs available that do much better at controlling chronic diseases but those drugs cost more, such as new drugs to treat hepatitis C.